The ANC and EFF have snatched two powerful positions, council speaker and chief whip, in the City of Ekurhuleni.
On Wednesday, the city’s former chief whip and DA councillor Khetha Shandu resigned amid plots to oust him. He cited personal reasons in his letter of resignation and said he was leaving with immediate effect.
“I hereby write to formally inform you of my resignation as the whip of council and a councillor of the City of Ekurhuleni due to personal reasons, and with immediate effect today, 1 February 2023. Thank you for the support I have received from my time in office,” reads Shandu’s letter.
Shandu and the speaker of council Raymond Dhlamini were facing a motion of no confidence tabled by the Independent Citizens Movement’s chairperson Joe Mojapelo last week, where they were spared another day in their respective offices after the council meeting collapsed due to bickering between the EFF and DA.
Another council sitting was scheduled for Thursday afternoon, where the motion against Dhlamini was expected to be carried over in the agenda. However, Dhlamini walked out before the council concluded its business, leaving the municipal manager to continue overseeing proceedings in his absence.
Dhlamini allegedly tried to delay the proceedings by adjourning the council sitting, however, after many breaks the councillors asked him to recuse himself. The meeting concluded late on Thursday.
Ultimately, EFF’s Nthabiseng Tshivhenga was appointed the interim speaker while the ANC’s Jongizizwe Dlabathi emerged as the acting chief whip.
Meanwhile, ActionSA has called on Mzi Khumalo, MEC for cooperative governance in Gauteng, to urgently intervene in what it calls a crisis in the City of Ekurhuleni.
According to Bongani Baloyi, ActionSA chairperson in Gauteng, Dhlamini is conflicted as he failed to carry out the agenda of the council sitting as mandated by section 139 of the constitution.
“Section 139 of the constitution empowers the local government MEC to intervene when a municipality is unable to fulfil an executive obligation in terms of the constitution or legislation,” said Baloyi.
“Dhlamini walked out of special council meeting, where he was set to face a motion of no confidence, leading to a breakdown in the council meeting.”
Baloyi said despite the merits of the motion tabled against Dhlamini, it was his responsibility to “facilitate the democratic business of council”. He said his behaviour cannot be accepted.
“The inability of the municipality to pass important items, including the adjustment budget, now directly threatens the sustainability of the municipality and its ability to provide services to its residents.
“To make matters worse, this isn’t Dhlamini’s first time displaying this contempt for council decorum. A week ago, he attempted to block scheduling a motion of no confidence in him by summarily ending a meeting of the programming committee prematurely.”
Baloyi explained further: “The City of Ekurhuleni cannot be hold to ransom by the undemocratic practices of its speaker, and the continued delays in council business by the DA-led coalition are further exacerbating the existing service delivery issues in that city. There is a human cost to his dilatory tactics; the people of Ekurhuleni suffer most in the end.
“As such, ActionSA will formally write to MEC Khumalo requesting that he urgently intervene in the City of Ekurhuleni to protect the residents from further declines in the delivery of basic services.
“As a constructive opposition in the City of Ekurhuleni, ActionSA does not seek to destabilise the DA-led coalition. But, as a party that values the rule of law, we will ensure that no public official engages in the undemocratic conduct regardless of which political party they are from.”
City of Ekurhuleni today elected the Acting Whip of Council after the DA speaker resigned. The council elected ANC Party leader comrade Jongizizwe Dlabathi. We then elected Acting speaker from the EFF after the DA speaker decided to leave Council, pic.twitter.com/t7CqAkfs66
— Ntuthuzelo (@Ntuthuzelotsik) February 2, 2023
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